TheNarutoFranchise featuresa number of all-powerful jutsuand techniques, yet none come close to the unfathomable power of the Mangekyo Sharingan. The series has set a clear power scale with visual techniques taking the lead, yet even within this power structure, the Mangekyo Sharingan takes clear precedence with its absurdly powerful abilities. While the Mangekyo may seem like an invincible technique, its glaring drawback makes its usage rather limited. With each use, the Mangekyo Sharingan loses part of its light, eventually going completely blind.
With such a crippling side-effect, theMangekyo Sharingan has to be usedwith caution, and though the effects of overusing this technique have been apparent throughout the series, one character seems to be immune to this downside – Obito Uchiha. Obito’s Mangekyo Sharingan granted him ‘Kamui’, a time-space ability that made him untouchable (quite literally), and despite being in continuous use, he never experienced any of the side-effects. A few plausible explanations are worth looking into that can explain this rare phenomenon.
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The Mangekyo Sharingan’s Drawback
Since the Mangekyo Sharingan essentially makes the user invincible, especially with abilities such as Susanoo and Amaeterasu, a crippling side-effect was necessary to keep its power in check. While the series has never explicitly stated how long it takes for the Mangekyo to lose its light, one aspect is clear that it is dependent on how often its abilities are used, and the types of techniques utilized. This is evident from the fact thatSasuke began losing his visionquite early on, which can be attributed to him using powerful abilities such as the Susanoo continuously, while Itachi and Kakashi started experiencing the side-effects much later.
The only method of bypassing the Mangekyo’s debilitating drawback is implanting another Uchiha’s Mangekyou, resulting in the strongest form of the Sharingan – the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. Obito only possessed the base form of the Mangekyo, yet he continuously spammed his signature ability, Kamui, without experiencing any of the side-effects.
One plausible explanation could be that the Kamui does not pose the same risk as the Susanoo, yet even if this were to be factored in,Obito used his Kamuifor almost two decades, and that too without desist. Theoretically, Obito should have lost his vision a long time ago, making his Mangekyo almost seem like a plot hole, although a tenable reason certainly exists to explain this incongruence within the series.
How Often Did Obito Use His Mangekyo Sharingan?
Some have theorized that Obito never went blind as he only used Kamui, and that too sparingly. However, a thorough analysis of the amount of timesObito has been witnessedusing Kamui says otherwise, even without considering its usage off-screen. From the moment Obito awoke his Mangekyo, his Kamui has been in continuous use, with some of its most notable usages during Obito’s fight with Konan and Minato, and during the Fourth Great Ninja War.
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Even outside of combat, Obito utilized his Kamui to travel long distances, appearing wherever he wanted to with his time-space ability. His screentime during the series has involved the Kamui one way or the other, meaning it was almost perpetually active. Such incessant usage would have surely resulted in his vision weakening to some extent, yet no such side-effects were present. The technique almost became second nature for him, meanwhileKakashi struggled to use Kamuimore than once in a single fight, clearly indicating that another factor is at play here.
Obito’s Unique Body Composition
The only plausible explanation that remains is Obito’s unique body, with half of it comprising Hashirama’s cells. Since the boulder crushed Obito’s entire right side, Madara had it replaced with artificial flesh made out of Hashirama Senju’s DNA.The First Hokage’s DNAis known to grant immense power to whoever imbues it with their own, as seen in the case of Yamato’s Wood Style. Since Obito’s body had accepted Hashirama’s cells and had adequately merged with them, it’s highly likely that the very same cells regressed the Mangekyo’s side-effect, allowing Obito to use Kamui perpetually.
This explanation is further fortified by Danzo’s right arm made out of Hashirama’s cells, giving him the ability to wield and control multiple Sharingan at the same time. Without these cells, Danzo could barely have the Shanringan implanted, let alone use their abilities. Madara’s reincarnated body underwent similar changes, as Kabuto had imbued the First Hokage’s cells with his vessel, in-turngiving Madara unfathomable strengthand chakra control. Considering these examples, Obito’s unwaning vision can be attributed to his body’s composition, allowing him to bypass the Mangekyo’s crippling side-effect and achieve a sort of pseudo-Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
